Method of making packages



Sept. 26, 1944. v

M. H, SIDEBOTHAM METHOD OF MAKING PACKAGES Filed Jan.' 14, 1942 Lu M Wmy MM I W 0m 5 MM M Patented Sept. 26, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE2,359,27l

METHOD OF MAKING PACKAGES Melvin H. Sidebotham, Newton, Mass asignor ofone-half to Harlow M. Russell, Chelsea,

Mass.

Application January 14, 1942, Serial No. 426,719

4 Claims. (Cl. 93-3) This invention relates to tea'bags, coflee bagsbeen previously treated to have sealing qualities and the like. whensubjected to heat and pressure. Figure 2 One object of my invention isto provide a shows the wrapper material with a charge of tea bag with astring attached tag; the bag being tea 4 positioned thereon.

'heat sealed to one end of the string, and the Figure 3 illustrates theseveral elements, from tag secured to the opposite end of the string bywhich the complete package is formed, assemfolding the tag about thestring and heat sealbled in position prior to the folding and sealinging the said string within the fold of the tag operations. The sheet ofwrapper material I,

Another object of my invention is to provide with the charge of teapositioned thereon, is posia tea bag with string attached tag, soconstructed l0 tioned in spaced relation with a flat section of tag thatthe several elements comprising the commaterial 3. A length of string 2has one of its plete bag assembly, may be secured together b endssuperposed along a mid-portion of the wrapthe application or heat andpressure. per material, I, and the other end of the string 2 A stillfurther object of my invention is to is positioned o lie along the md-Portion of the provide an improved method for assembling and tagmaterial The tag String 2 y be o y sealing together by a sequence ofperations the 7 suitable material such as twisted or braided CDC-several elements comprising a complete tea bag ton it may be made of DPe Qr er plastic with string attached tag. material.

With said objects in view, my invention com The tag material 3 s P f yade of thin sists in the improved package and method of Paper cardboardhaving the u e djacent to making the same substantially as hereinafterdethe string 1 coated i h a mopl stic which scribed and claimed willhave adhesive qualities when subjected to 01' the accompanying drawing:heat and P essure- Figure 1 is a plan view of the sheet of wrap- 4illustrates the condition of the package ping material from which thebody of the bag 5 assembly, Shown gafter e pper maorpackageismade.terial and the tag material have been doubled Figure 2 is a plan view ofthe wrapping mate Over the tag string 2. The folded wrapper 5 thus i lshown in Figure 1, t a charge of the encloses the charge of tea 4; andthe folded tag modity to be packaged, in place upon the said 5 has thefree end of the in 2 P sitioned wrapping materiaL within the fold of thesaid tag 6. I

Figure 3 shows string superpbsed upon the The next operation inproducing the tea packsheet of wrapping material and upon a section ageconsists n the pplication of heat and presof paper from which t tag ismade sure to the four outside margins I (Fig. 5) of the Fi 4 is planView of t package assembly folded wrapper 5. The application of heat andafter th h t of wrapping material has been pressure serves to adhesivelyseal together corredoubled over the string and over the commo t p ndingmargins of the folded wrapper. Thus to b packaged and th t materialdoubled Over the charge of tea 4 is sealed within the closure t ppositeend f the string formed by the folded and sealed wrapper 5. As

Figure 5 illustrates the completed package aft previously noted thewrapper material is preferthe heat sealing operatign has been performedably made of sheet material which has been Figure 6 illustrates amodified fo of package previously treated to have sealing qualities whenwherein one end of the tag string is secured to SubJected wheat andPressureth outside surface f t bag and the other The operation ofsealing the margins l of (Fig.

end f th t i g secured t the urfa f the 5) the folded wrapper 5 alsoserves to seal one t 4 end of the tag string 2 within the fold of theFigure '7 illustrates the progressive steps in the Wrappermethod ofmaking the bags or packages. The folded tag 6 (Fig. 5), with the freeend of Similar reference characters indicate similar the tag String 2 psi i ed Within the d eof part or featur s in ll of th i i is subjectedto the application of heat, and the Referring t th drawing Fi 1 is aplan view folds of the tag pressed together. The heat serves 0f thewrapper material I from whi h th body to cause the thermoplastic coatingon the canof the bag i m d s id wrapper t l may tacting surfaces of thetag to become tacky, and be made of gauz parchment paper paper d I theapplication of pressure serves to secure the from hemp pulp, or sheetsmade from ther contacting surfaces together. The free end of the plasticmaterials, The wrapper m te i l h uld string 2 is caused to becomesecured within the be thin and porous, to permit watertopass freely tagb the action Sealing together the contherethrough, and yet havesuflicient strength t ing surfaces of the folded tag.

when wet to retain the conte ts. ther i Th The successive steps of thepreferred method of wrapper materia may be'of any d r d ty producing myimproved package are illustrated however, I prefer a wrapper materialthat has by '7- A length of string id is positioned to overlie andbisect the wrapper sheet I and the section of tag material 3. The nextstep in the method of making the package consists in depositing a chargeof tea 4 upon a half section of the wrapper m iterial l. The free areaof the wrapper material I is then folded along a line parallel with, andadjacent to the string 2a. The said free area of the wrapper material isthus positioned over the charge of tea 4, and doubled against the areaof the wrapper material containing the commodity to be packaged.

While the wrapper material is being folded, the

section of tag material 3 is in a like manner the string 2a, is alsosubjected to heat and pressure which cause the adhesively treatedcontacting surfaces of the tag to adhere together. The action of sealingthe surfaces of folded tag 6 together also serves to secure the stringwithin the fold of the tag material.

The final operation in producing the package consists in severing thestring 2a (Fig. 7) at a: between the completed package and the adjacentincompleted package.

Figure 6 illustrates a modification of my invention wherein the tagstring 2 is adhesively secured to one of the margins 1 and on theoutside of the folded wrapper 5. The tag 3 is not doubled over the freeend of the string 2; instead the string 2 is adhesively secured .to anoutside surface of the tag. In producing this modified package thestring 2 may be treated with a thermoplastic, so that upon theapplication of heat and pressure the string will adhere to the wrappermaterial and to the unfolded tag.

While the invention has been described as a tea bag, it will beunderstood that it may be used to advantage in packaging varioussubstances other than tea. Therefore the invention is not intended to belimited to the packaging of tea.

While I have illustrated the preferred forms of construction and thepreferred method of carrying my invention into effect, these are capableof variations and modification without departing from my invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim is:

1. The method of successively making packages with string attached tagscomprising positioning a flat sheet of thermoplastically treated wrappermaterial in spaced apart relation with a flat sheet of thermoplasticallytreated tag material, depositing a charge of the commodity to bepackaged upon a side portion of the wrapper material, positioning acontinuous section of tag string to pass through the mid-portion of thewrapper material and through the mid-portion of the tag material, thenfolding the thermoplastically treated wrapper material along a lineparallel with and adjacent to the tag string, to provide a foldedwrapper with the said charge of commodity and a portion of the saidstring within the fold of the wrapper, folding the thermoplasticallytreated tag material over a portion of said tag string, applying heatand pressure to seal the margins of the folded wrapper and to secure thetag string positioned therein, applying heat and pressure to'sealtogether contacting surfaces of the folded tag, and severing the tagstring from connection with the next succeeding package.

2. The method of successively making packages with string attached tagcomprising positioning a flat sheet of thermoplastically treated wrappermaterial in spaced apart relation with a flat sheet of thermoplasticallytreated tag material, depositing a charge of the commodity to bepackaged upon a side portion of the wrapper material, positioning anintermediate section of tag string to pass through the mid-portion ofthe wrapper material and through the mid-portion of the tag material,then folding the thermoplastically treated wrapper material along a lineparallel with and adjacent to the tag string, to provide a foldedwrapper with the said charge of commodity and a portion of the saidstring within the fold of the wrapper, folding the thermoplasticallytreated tag material over a portion of said tag string, applying heatand pressure to seal the margins of the folded Wrapper and to secure thetag string positioned therein, applying heat and pressure to sealtogether contacting surfaces of the folded tag.

3. The method of successively making packages with a string attachedtag, comprising singly and successively positionin sheets ofthermoplastically treated wrappers spaced apart in contact with acontinuous section of tag string, with a tag for each wrapper sheetpositioned adjacent to the tag string and in spaced apart relation withl the corresponding wrapper sheet; then singly and successivelydepositing a charge of the commodity to be packaged upon a portion ofeach wrapper; singly and successively folding each wrapper along a lineparallel with and adjacent to the tag string, to provide a succession offolded wrappers with a charge of commodity and a portion of the tagstring within the fold of the wrapper; singly and successively applyingheat and pressure to seal together the margin of the folded wrappers andto secure the tag string to each wrapper; then, following the sealing ofeach wrapper, securing the corresponding tag to the tag string; andsingly and successively severing the tagstring to provide packages withstring attached tag.

4. The method of successively making packages with a string attachedtag, comprising singly and successively positioning wrapper sheetsspaced apart in contact with a tag string; a tag for each wrapper sheetpositioned adjacent to the tag string in spaced apart relation with thecorresponding wrapper sheet; then singly and successively depositing acharge of the commodity to be packaged upon a portion of each wrapper;then singly and successively folding each wrapper to provide asuccession of folded wrappers with a charge of commodity and a portionof the tag stning within the fold of the wrapper; singly andsuccessively sealing together the margins of the folded wrappers andsecuring the tag string to each wrapper; then, following the sealing ofeach wrapper, securing the corresponding tag to the tag string; andsingly and successively severing the tag string to provide packages withstring attached tag.

' MELVIN H. SIDEBO'I'HAM.

